November 18, 2015

We're helplessly drawn to natural or dry processed Ethiopian coffees. The fruity flavors are always a pleasant surprise, so we were stoked to see this Verve Coffee Roasters Lalo Natural on the shelves of our local roaster. In dry processing, the coffee cherries are picked, and then laid out to dry. The coffee bean, still wrapped up in the fruit of the cherry, begins to ferment, and an intense fruity characteristic can develop. This fruitiness really shines in cold brew.

COFFEE SPECS

Producer: Mohammed Lalo

Country: Ethiopia

Region: Limu Seka Woreda

Cultivar: Jimma 74110, Jimma 7227

Process: Dry-Process

Elevation: 1750-2100 Meters

HOW WE BREWED IT

60g medium grind

700ml ice/water mix

1 drip/second initial drip rate

~6 hour brew

Unusual for a natural processed coffee, this cold brew has a crispness and clarity to it that really highlights the coffee's natural flavors. There's a distinct fruitiness and floral aroma, a result of the dry-processing, that reminds us of strawberry rhubarb pie. Wrapping things up is a sweet caramel finish. Looking forward to afternoon sips of this one over ice.